This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
1. Technical Field
The invention relates to a single sheet handling device for the input and the output of rectangular single sheets respectively into and out of a container. Such rectangular single sheets are in particular banknotes which are automatically supplied to the container for storage or automatically removed from the container for output.
2. Discussion
From the documents U.S. Pat. No. 4,616,817, U.S. Pat. No. 6,682,068 and WO 00/24662, arrangements are known in which deposited banknotes are supplied to individual storage compartments which cannot be separated from the arrangements. From the document DE 33 25 182 C2, a further arrangement for storing single sheets in fixed storage compartments which cannot be separated from the arrangement is known, in which stacking wheels are used for feeding the single sheets into the storage compartments. Further, a large number of arrangements for storing single sheets in a stack is known, in which the stacking direction extends vertically and the feeding elements are arranged above the stack. Arrangements of this type are known, for example, from the documents EP 0 714 078 B1, DE 32 37 821 C2 and GB 2 301 092 A. On the other hand, a large number of arrangements for removing single sheets from a stack of sheets are known. In particular, the document EP 0 364 790 discloses a circulating pull-off element having a profiled surface. Further, so-called cash recycling devices are known in which deposited banknotes are supplied to a storage compartment and, upon withdrawals at a later point in time, they are again removed from this compartment. Such a cash recycling device having storage compartments which cannot be separated from the device is known, for example, from the document EP 0 148 310.
From the document DE 199 04 540 A1 a banknote storage container for cash dispensers is known. Further, from the document U.S. Pat. No. 6,889,897 B2, a banknote storage container is known in which a large number of feeding elements as well as, alternatively, a large number of separating elements are arranged in the banknote storage container itself which is designed as a cassette. This, however, has the disadvantage that these elements also have to be provided in replacement cassettes and that space has to be provided for the feeding and separating elements in the cassette itself, which space can no longer be used for banknote storage. Further, a disadvantage of arranging feeding and separating elements within the cassette is that these elements increase the weight of the cassette and therefore the transport expense for the transport of the cassette is increased. However, in order to enable the feeding of banknotes into a banknote container and the removal of banknotes from the same container, the feeding and separating elements have to be positioned accurately with respect to the stack surface or, respectively, the front side of the banknote stack contained in the container so that a reliable banknote transport into and out of the container is made possible.